Gianni Infantino made a notable public appearance over the weekend, attending the opening of the Under-20 Women's World Cup in Poland, in what marked one of his first visible outings since scrapping a controversial commercial plan that has left his leadership under intense strain.
The Fifa president was seen in the stands engaging in conversation with Cezary Kulesza, president of the Polish football federation, as the host nation faced Argentina in the tournament's opening fixture on Saturday. For weeks prior, Infantino had kept a notably low profile following the collapse of a scheme that sought to overhaul how World Cup revenues were managed, a plan that triggered fierce resistance from several member associations and figures within Fifa itself.
The project, first revealed by The Times shortly after this year's World Cup concluded in July, envisioned creating a $20 billion commercial subsidiary to oversee Fifa's revenue streams, including those generated by the World Cup. Under the proposal, a fifth of the new entity would have been controlled by outside investors, spearheaded by a fund tied to Joshua Kushner. The plan also promised $20 million payouts to each of Fifa's 211 member federations, with a deadline set for mid-September.
However, the initiative unraveled rapidly, with Infantino withdrawing it just four days after it became public knowledge. The backlash was swift and broad: Uefa rallied support from the Asian Football Confederation and Concacaf in opposition to the scheme, while a number of senior figures inside Fifa also voiced discontent, both with the plan itself and with Infantino's handling of it.
Despite the plan's abandonment, tensions have not subsided. A threatened boycott of the Under-20 Women's World Cup by European nations — who make up six of the 24 competing teams — was called off last week only after Fifa provided explicit guarantees that the shelved commercial project would not be revived in any form.
Legal disputes stemming from the original proposal remain ongoing, and European football officials are expected to play a central role in efforts to challenge Infantino's position ahead of Fifa's presidential election next year. Calls for his resignation have come from Uefa and other governing bodies within the sport.
The legal battle escalated further on Thursday when Fifa submitted a court filing accusing Uefa of orchestrating what it called a